Re: Imagine
by CrossFaded
Summary: The hardest choices require the strongest will. How far will Kamijou Touma go to reimagine a better world? The path to ascend beyond the gods exacts a heavy toll.
1. Imagine Breaker (1)

**Author's Note: **

This is technically a sequel of Re:Pray. I say technically because this is a story that can stand on its own but if you've read Re:Pray beforehand, this story will certainly be a different kind of experience compared to those who never read Re:Pray. By the way, this chapter might be rather M-rated, but this will be the only chapter that is rather M-rated.

* * *

Fire and sulphur rained down upon a city that never saw it coming. Many screamed in pain as the fire wrapped their bodies in a cruel embrace. Those who were lucky enough not to be consumed by the flames soon found themselves turned into a pillar of salt.

Within the chaos and destruction stood a man with a satisfied grin as he admired the red gem attached to the gauntlet he was wearing on his right hand. For so long he had been desperately trying to find a way to bring order into this chaotic world where the Talented were often at war with those without talent but wanted to reach the level of the Talented. With the gem, he finally found a solution.

A woman glared at the man in tears, "My city did nothing wrong. They deserved none of this!"

"Frightening, isn't it? To see everything you hold dear gone in an instant, yet powerless to change a single thing."

He clenched his right hand, and the red gem glowed ominously. The woman transformed into a pillar of salt. With the power of the red gem, he can now create a perfect world filled with peace and compassion. No one has to be afraid of a war taking everything they hold dear away from them anymore.

All that's left is to get rid of the greatest threat to his plan.

A power that could supposedly negate even the miracles of God.

Alyssa Birdway was one of the greatest healers known to man. There was no illness or injury she can't heal with her immense medical knowledge. However, she was branded as a heretic just because she had that power. Those morons would rather die than be healed by her. It was a cruel joke that of all people, she had to be the one cursed with that power.

* * *

Touma awoke in a cold sweat. The dream he had was so vivid that this might actually be a memory of a past life instead. Was he the man in that dream? A villian wielding the Reality Gem to bring about chaos and destruction upon an innocent city for the greater good? And who the hell is Alyssa Birdway again? So many questions, yet he had no answers to any of them.

"Good morning," yawned Misaki as she laid beside him with only her panties on.

The fan broke down and it was a stuffy night, so Misaki went to bed with just her panties on. Normally, this was a sign that Misaki wanted to do something intimate with him.

Touma kissed Misaki on the cheek, "Good morning."

"Are you alright? You don't look so well."

"Just a little headache, that's all."

Misaki put on a T-shirt before preparing breakfast in the kitchen, "There's a bottle of Bufferin somewhere in the cupboard if you need it."

"Do you need any help in the kitchen?"

"Go watch TV or something if you're that bored."

Touma switched on the TV. All of the channels were broadcasting inane shit to fill the morning. No one really cares what a singer's favourite brand of coffee is, nor the number of shoes they have at home. Knowing what are best offers one can take advantage of at the supermarket might be useful, but Misaki was rich enough not to look at the price when buying groceries.

Today's breakfast was steamed rice, a pot of miso soup and a plate of tamagoyaki. Misaki only bought the best ingredients and with her expert culinary skills, every bite was paradise.

"Aren't you eating?" said Touma.

"You see, none of my bras fit me anymore and I don't really want to leave the house braless, so..."

"So…?"

Misaki's smile was the most beautiful thing in the world. Even the brilliance of the morning sun sometimes pales in comparison to her smile.

"Buy me a couple of 32C sized bras."

Since she had prepared such a wonderful breakfast for him, he shall refrain from pointing out that she should have bought new bras when she went from A to B instead of waiting until C. It was certainly a happy accident for Misaki who believed B was the most she would grow into.

"Any design preferences?"

"You may pick any bra you like as long as its 32C."

"I got you."

Touma nonchalantly picked up his wallet and waved goodbye with a smile. After closing the door, he dropped his act and let out a deep sigh. Buying lingerie for your girlfriend isn't that weird. Everything is going to turn out just fine.

* * *

Six months ago, a space elevator named Endymion was built by both Academy City and Orbit Portal Company. There was an opening concert at Endymion and Meigo Arisa was selected to be the lead singer in that concert.

Touma glanced at a cluster of skyscrapers that took the place of Endymion. No, Endymion wasn't demolished or taken apart to make way for the skyscrapers. Endymion was erased from reality, like it never existed in the first place. Meigo Arisa as well. At least there were people who somehow remembered Arisa and how her music brought hope to them.

"Glad to see that you made a full recovery," said Seria.

Touma blinked. He was not expecting Seria-nee to appear in person when she had been evading him for the past six months. The last time they met, he had shattered her limbs with a metal pole. If it wasn't for Academy City's medical advancements, Seria-nee would have been bedridden for life. Fixing the damage done to his right arm and leg when he used the Gems to bring Misaki back to life however, was far beyond Academy City at the moment. At best he would have a functional but still disgustingly charred right arm.

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, just checking in on my cute little brother and see how he's doing."

Touma patted Seria firmly on her shoulder with his right hand, "Pretty good, I'd say."

Seria-nee may have done something horrible to Misaki, but trying to force an apology out of Seria-nee would just push her further away.

"Great."

Touma gave Seria a hug, "Thanks."

In the end, Seria-nee only wanted power to protect him and Maria, even if it means falling into the darkness. He could at least appreciate the good Seria-nee has done for him. Like attempting to fix his damaged right arm and leg using Equ:DarkMatter. Touma didn't like how the Reality Gem within his right hand used Equ:DarkMatter to fix the damages, but he didn't want to be an emotional burden to Misaki anymore.

Seria's face flushed bright red with embarrassment. The old Seria-nee was still in there somewhere. He just needed to drag that part of her out with kindness like what Misaki suggested.

"Just because I called you cute, doesn't mean I gave you permission to hug me!"

Touma grinned, "I don't remember asking for permission the last time I hugged you."

"You were six. Now you're a grown ass teenager who even got himself a girlfriend."

Seria-nee was always the smart and reliable older sister. She would definitely know what kind of bras he should be buying for Misaki. It was a little embarrassing to ask, but he couldn't let go of a chance to spend some time with her.

* * *

The moment Touma stepped into the lingerie store, he sensed a murderous aura emanating from the other girls doing their shopping. This doesn't make sense at all. He had never met those girls in his life. Or was he wrong to think that it isn't weird for a guy to buying lingerie? They must have thought of him as a pervert who likes crossdressing in secret. If Seria-nee wasn't accompanying him, security would have dragged him out of the store.

"Is there something wrong with guys being here?" whispered Touma.

Seria grabbed a red bra with rose patterns, "Have you heard of an urban rumor regarding the Pervert Who Lived?"

The School Garden was known to be an area where only females are allowed in. However, a boy once managed to enter the School Garden and made it out alive. This boy was known as the Pervert Who Lived. No one really knows what his name was, other than him having black, spiky hair.

"Come on, urban rumors are called rumors for a reason. Who knows if it's actually true."

Touma himself would know that it's actually true. After all, he was the 'Pervert Who Lived' who barged into the School Garden to retrieve a teddy bear for a little girl with Misaki about six months ago.

Seria discarded the red bra with rose patterns, "Who knows if it's true indeed."

"I hope you aren't still wearing plain white bra and-"

Seria hurriedly covered his mouth, "I'd appreciate it if you could keep your volume down when commenting on my choice of undergarments!"

"Alright, alright. My bad."

He got a little carried away and forgot about the other girls around him who were already so close to stabbing him to death if they had a knife and if it was legal to do so. What was so wrong about entering the School Garden anyway?! It's not like he did it to ogle or rape girls like devouring an all-you-can-eat buffet spread.

"By the way, do you know how to put on a bra?" said Seria.

"Why would you even ask me such a weird question? Of course not. As a guy, I obviously have never worn a bra ever."

Touma made sure to say that extra loud so that everyone around him would know that he's definitely not a creepy crossdresser and Seria-nee wasn't his enabler. Not that it was going to magically change anything, but as they always say, you fail 100% of the shots you don't take.

"On second thought, forget it."

"Wait what? You can't just leave me hanging after asking such a weird question."

Seria pointed to a white bra with spider web lacing, "You like it?"

"I'm okay with any design as long as it's comfortable enough for Misaki."

Seria did a facepalm, like she had heard something so utterly idiotic from him that she almost wanted to send him back to preschool again.

"You just don't get it, do you?"

"Get what?"

"If she really wanted new bras, she could've just went online and ordered a few for herself. There's no need to ask you to buy some for her personally."

"I guess me buying for her would take a lot less time than waiting for delivery. She can be pretty lazy sometimes."

"I- I can't believe you're saying that with a straight face. Are you really that fucking dense?"

Touma laughed at how Seria got so worked up that she almost wanted to punch him in the face, "I'm sorry."

Basically, Misaki just wanted to wear lingerie he liked to make him happy. And he should also offer to help Misaki put on the lingerie he bought for her… which sounds kind of silly because clearly Misaki could put them on herself but Seria-nee said it would make Misaki happy if he offered. It was all about taking the initiative and make Misaki feel wanted as a woman which would in turn make Misaki happy.

"Alright," said Touma with a bra in one hand and a mannequin in front of him inside a private changing room, "I'm ready when you are."

It was time for a lesson by Seria-sensei on how to put on a bra.

* * *

Touma hoped he could peacefully make it back home carrying a bag full of lingerie. It was the kind of bag that screams 'Look at how sexy I am. If you want to be as sexy as me, purchase your lingerie from this department store today.' They ran out of discreet packaging and he sure as hell didn't want to look like a creep carrying lingerie with his bare hands, so he could only sigh and accept his fate.

He recognized the girl holding a fan in front of him. Kongou Mitsuko. Knowing his rotten luck, Mitsuko would surely recognize him as the Level 0 guy who made fun of a Judgement girl's boobs when it was actually Shiage who did it. Maybe he should take a detour through an alleyway to avoid any potential trouble with Mitsuko.

Mitsuko snapped her fan shut and turned around with her lips curled in disgust, "How much longer do you intend on stalking me, you spiky scumbag?"

"I wasn't… stalking you? See, my house is just right up ahead after that shopping mall."

"Are you telling me that you happen to live in a high-end apartment worth about a hundred million yen? A Level 0 like you can't possibly afford the rent- what are you carrying in your hand? Lingerie?!"

Touma sighed, "Yeah, do you have a problem with that?"

Mitsuko raised her fan to her mouth in embarrassment, "It's none of my business what you buy those lingerie for."

He can be whatever Mitsuko thinks he is. Can't get any worse than being the 'Pervert Who Lived' anyway. Everything is going to turn out just fine my ass. He probably cemented his position as either a crossdressing pervert or the other kind of pervert who gets off on lingerie.

"If it makes you feel better, I'll just go the other way."

"Thank you."

Touma reluctantly stepped into the alleyway. At least Mitsuko was willing to let the matter rest when he offered a compromise. Maybe she isn't as bad of a person he remembered she was.

A lot of things could go wrong inside an alleyway, which was why Shiage kept nagging at Rikou to stop exploring alleyways for fun. But hey, Rikou said it was just as dangerous as crossing the road. What Rikou doesn't realize was that there were no traffic lights to signal if it was safe to cross the alleyway.

Four thugs came into view. One of them even had a gun. Rotten luck. Wait, was that his teacher Kiyama Harumi being tied up and gagged at a corner?

Touma's right hand transformed into a ghastly white blade, "Run before I get nasty."

This was a side effect caused by the Reality Gem within his right hand when it used Equ:DarkMatter to fix the damages done to his right arm and legs. Maybe one could call it an upgrade since he could still use Imagine Breaker, but he had seen for himself through Yuriko that having more power doesn't necessarily mean that it's a good thing.

There are six fundamental aspects that makes up the Universe. Power, Space, Reality, Soul, Time, and Mind. Extraordinarily powerful beings far beyond Magic Gods known as Personifications compressed the remnants of each fundamental aspect into a singularity. These six singularities were collectively known as Gems. The Reality Gem was the singularity that represented Reality, the Soul Gem was the singularity that represented Soul and so on.

And how did he came into possession with the Reality Gem was honestly one of the many questions he doesn't have an answer to. He probably had the Reality Gem together with Imagine Breaker since birth for some unknown reason.

A thug aimed his gun at Miss Kiyama with trembling hands, "I'll fuck this woman up if you try anything stupid."

The four of them seemed frightened enough. Maybe a little intimidation tactic might do the trick. Things would have been a lot easier if he could simply extend his blade long enough to slice the gun in half.

Touma carved a hole in the wall. He then picked up a chunk of concrete and crushed it into fine powder.

"Let the woman go. Or the next thing I'm aiming for will be your heads."

The thug holding a gun against Miss Kiyama dropped dead from a bullet to his head before a squad of Anti-Skill officers burst into the scene and swiftly apprehended the other three thugs while Miss Kiyama was escorted to an ambulance. One of the officers was Yomikawa Aiho, his P.E teacher. Not that Miss Yomikawa would remember him as her student since he had been away from classes for about six months already.

"I know you just wanted to help," said Aiho. "But a hostage situation should always be handled with extreme caution."

"I'm sorry."

Miss Yomikawa had a point. The thugs might be intimidated enough to run away after an impressive display of strength, or intimidated enough to shoot Miss Kiyama because they felt they had nothing to lose anymore. The best way to handle a hostage situation was always through negotiation.

"Still, you got potential, kid. Ever considered joining Judgement?"

"I'm... not so sure about that."

He did promise Arisa to protect the dreams of others on her behalf and joining Judgement would be a good way to fulfill that promise. It's just that qualifying for Judgement was already a pain in the ass, not to mention that the actual work they do isn't very exciting.

Aiho eyed the bag full of lingerie he was carrying with a grin, "How about you have a chat with your girlfriend first before getting back to me?"

Touma smiled, "Yeah, I probably should."

This wasn't about him anymore. When you have a girlfriend, it's about her as well.

* * *

Touma was glad that Misaki didn't seem too bothered that Seria-nee accompanied him while he bought the bras Misaki wanted. Seria-nee even bought matching panties as gift for Misaki. Of course, like what Seria-nee predicted, Misaki threw all of the panties into the bin when he told her it was from Seria-nee, except for one which was from him only because it came as a freebie with a particular bra. Maybe Misaki wanted to wear only the things he bought for her, or maybe Misaki still haven't fully forgiven Seria-nee, but it was most likely both.

Misaki put on the white bra and panties with spider web lacing in front of a mirror, "Very comfortable. I like it."

"I hope you aren't saying that because it's from me."

Misaki flashed a seductive smile, "Why don't you confirm it for yourself?"

He took off the bra and started teasing Misaki's nipples, "I can see how comfortable you are now."

"How bold of you to not ask for permission first."

"I can stop if you don't like it."

Misaki giggled as she guided his hand inside her panties. While they have been intimate, it was only limited to cuddling, kissing, and her going down on him. This time, he could finally repay the favor with his fingers.

"Don't stop. I want you to be sure that I'm very, very, very comfortable indeed."

* * *

Seria headed to her desk and switched on the laptop. The Touma she knew would have demanded an apology from her to Misaki or demand that she quit working for the Dark Side like Maria from the moment they met in person. Misaki must've taught him how to be more subtle if he wanted to coax his older sister into doing the 'right' thing.

Ever since she became a public figure as a member of the Board Of Directors, there were often rumors flying across various stupid forums about her. The latest one was about her wearing childish Gekota panties despite her age.

Seria glanced at a stray Gekota panty on a pile of dirty clothes near the door. Damn it. Those imbeciles who has nothing better to do with their lives got it right for once. The design may be childish, but those panties are comfortable and cheap enough to be disposable. If she was still that naive 12 years old girl, she would have liked Gekota, but she was now 19. Deep down, she did want to go back to the old days as the kind, smart and reliable older sister to Touma and Maria and by accepting Touma's invitation, she was feeding her temptation to end her pursuit of gaining more power.

Seria wiped tears off her cheek as she opened a report on the current progress of the Level 5 Shift Experiment. Being alone isn't that bad. At least there was no one but a pesky little angel in your heart begging you to stop doing all those horrible things.

* * *

**Author's Note: **

I realized that there's actually not a lot of fanfics where Touma has Misaki as his girlfriend. There is A New Road Of Misfortune by Itherael and A Certain Strange Scenario by Brosephg that takes it one step further by having Misaki as his wife instead though.

I hope you liked this chapter and if you have any comments feel free to leave them in the box below.


	2. Imagine Breaker (2)

Fukiyose Seiri slammed her fist on Touma's desk, "Where's the homework you're supposed to hand up?"

Seiri was transferred over to his class as the new class monitor while Motoharu was transferred over to the other class Misaki was in. Apparently, his class needed some order and discipline since Miss Kiyama was more of a researcher than a teacher who knew how to handle a class.

"I forgot," said Touma.

He couldn't possibly tell Seiri that he spent the entire day being intimate with Misaki so he had no time to finish his homework. He could've asked Misaki to do his homework for him, but he was a man of integrity.

Seiri sighed, "And how about you, Hamazura Shiage?"

"Sorry," said Shiage.

Shiage spent the entire day playing a newly released game called Gods Of War so he didn't have time to finish his homework as well. Shiage may also claim to be a man of integrity who would rather be punished than to cheat his way out of trouble, but Touma knew he was probably embarrassed or afraid to ask Rikou to do his homework for him.

Seiri clenched her fists, trying her hardest not to explode, "You two are the most laziest and irresponsible people I've ever met! This isn't the first time already!"

"I don't understand why you bother with collecting homework when Miss Kiyama doesn't give a shit if anyone finished the homework she gives," said Shiage.

"I take great pride and responsibility in carrying out my duties as the class monitor. Traits which both of you are sorely lacking in."

Miss Kiyama entered the classroom. It appears that yesterday's kidnapping incident didn't affect her too much as she began to write down some practice calculus problems on the blackboard. Maybe she was pretending to be alright because she didn't want the class to be worried about her. As usual, the class greeted her enthusiastically while Miss Kiyama would flash an embarrassed smile in response. Even if Miss Kiyama wasn't the best in teaching, she did care a lot about the well-being of her students.

Seiri complained to Miss Kiyama about how he and Shiage have not been submitting homework several times already.

While Miss Kiyama wasn't upset that he and Shiage didn't do the homework she gave, it was only fair that the both of them are to clean the pool after school as punishment.

* * *

Misaki wished she could transfer to Touma's class as the new class monitor but unfortunately she lost most of her influence when she decided to participate only in ethical experiments. On the other end, there was Kumokawa Seria who was perfectly willing to become a Kihara lapdog for power and influence.

She flipped open her textbook about AIM Diffusion Fields to page 53. Just the thought of Seria pissed her off. Seria must be fucked in the head if she thinks it was appropriate to buy panties as a gift! And Touma was a dense idiot who actually thought there was nothing wrong with Seria buying panties for her. No, just because Seria is a girl doesn't mean it's okay. No normal person regardless of gender would buy such an intimate thing as a gift.

Misaki rolled her eyes as Motoharu walked up to her desk. What an eyesore. How was he the class monitor with his stupid sunglasses and half-button shirt again? Did he bribe the right people with porn magazines or something? Thank goodness she only had a year left in this school before moving on to high school with Touma.

She fished out her homework from her bag and handed it to Motoharu.

"Thanks, sexy," grinned Motoharu.

Misaki took a deep breath and forced a smile. Yup, he's definitely saying it just to piss her off. No need to feed the troll with what he wants.

"You're welcome."

Rikou shot Motoharu a glare, "She's taken. You know that, right?"

Motoharu burst into laughter, "Relax, it's just a joke."

"It won't be a joke anymore when I force this pen down your throat."

"Violence is never the solution, Sleepyhead."

Rikou hurled the pen at Motoharu as he ran towards the front rows with a cheeky smile. Good riddance to that slimebag.

"Thanks," said Misaki.

It was endearing to see how far Rikou would go for her. She was lucky to have a friend like Rikou.

Rikou handed her a physical copy of a game called Gods Of War, "Sex isn't the only bonding activity you two can do as a couple. There's a co-op mode where both players can clear the game together."

The story behind Gods Of War was about a god declaring war against the other gods in his quest to become the god of gods. It sounded like a generic RPG but the graphics were breathtaking and the combat gameplay seemed fun enough.

Misaki pouted, "You make it sound like sex is all we do everyday at home."

Non-penetrative sex, that is. She hated how she still wasn't ready for penetrative sex. Her past trauma still lingers, always eager to drag her down into a bottomless pit of darkness and misery if she were to even think about penetrative sex.

Miss Tsukuyomi started her lesson with a recap about the ultimate goal of Academy City, SYSTEM. To find someone who had a body surpassing humanity and be able to do God's calculations. But none of them realized that there were already six extraordinarily powerful beings known as Personifications who had already achieved SYSTEM. Together, those Personifications forged the Gems, a set of six of the most powerful artifacts in the Universe. If one were to miraculously gather all the Gems, one could actually achieve SYSTEM.

Misaki smiled to herself. If Touma had not brought her back to life by using three of those Gems, she would not have known what it means to be truly loved.

* * *

Touma began scrubbing the drained pool floor in the blistering hot sun. It was cloudy this past few days and now it turns sunny? Seriously? Misaki was going to visit later with some ice cream, so at least there was something to look forward to.

Shiage blasted water at him with the rubber hose, "Hah, you failed to dodge my Reality Shattering Beam."

"And yet I remain unharmed, puny god."

Touma picked up another rubber hose and engaged in an intense water battle against Shiage. They may be screaming fanciful attack moves over and over again but it was really just the both of them swinging the hose around like some idiot chunnibyous.

"Dragon Blast!" said Touma.

Shiage ducked low over the stream of water and the water ended up striking Miss Kiyama instead.

Touma apologized profusely, hoping that Miss Kiyama won't give him another detention for playing with water instead of cleaning the pool.

Miss Kiyama started to take off her clothes while saying it was alright to have some fun.

"Miss Kiyama?!" said Touma.

"My clothes are wet, so I'm going to dry them over there. Is there a problem with that?"

"You… really don't see a problem with people seeing you without any clothes?"

"I'm still wearing my bra and panties, so it's alright."

Shiage was afraid of Rikou getting the wrong idea, so he made a quick getaway to the canteen for some soda and hamburger. Given how violent Rikou can be, Shiage had every reason to be afraid.

"By the way, do you have any idea who might be after you?" said Touma.

Misaki was older than Rikou and should be more understanding that Miss Kiyama was just being weird.

Miss Kiyama patted his shoulder with a smile, "Anti-Skill and Judgement are investigating the matter. Don't worry, they're good at what they do."

Misaki appeared with two tubs of ice cream in a swimsuit, "Darling, if you're so concerned, how about joining Judgement instead?"

She didn't seem particularly upset as she hugged his arm with a smile. Thank god Misaki is a reasonable person who clearly sees that there's nothing going on between him and Miss Kiyama. Older girls are truly a blessing to this world.

* * *

It was almost evening when Touma was done with cleaning the pool. Shiage never returned because he wanted to give him and Misaki some couple time. What a wonderful excuse to get out of the punishment. Touma insisted that Misaki not help since he was the one being punished, so he continued on with the cleaning alone as Misaki sat at a corner and waited for him to be done. He was really looking forward to that tub of ice cream after he was done, but Misaki accidentally finished both tubs because it was too delicious to stop.

"If you don't watch your diet, your D cup upgrade is going to come at a heavy cost," said Touma.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I've heard that gaining 30kg is enough to upgrade a woman's breast by one cup size."

Misaki rolled her eyes and mockingly clapped at his incredible discovery, "Wow, what a brilliant roundabout way to tell me that I'm going to grow fat if I don't watch my diet."

Touma wrapped his arms around Misaki and kissed her on the cheek, "I still love you all the same, fat or not."

He loved making Misaki smile. Her smile was a ray of sunshine that warmed his heart. He wanted so badly to just lead a quiet life with her and forget about everything else, but he promised Arisa that he would protect the dreams of others on Arisa's behalf and joining Judgement would be a good way to fulfill that promise. So here he was, standing in the lobby of the Judgement Training Center in District 2.

Misaki might seem supportive on the surface, but he could tell that she didn't really want him to be here. Most of Judgement's work was rather mundane but Misaki was convinced he would definitely end up in life-threatening situations because of his dumb rotten luck.

His PE teacher Miss Yomikawa Aiho handed him a Judgement recruitment pamphlet. She wasn't in charge of recruitment but her rank as Captain gave her some leeway. After all, Anti-Skill was the one in charge of training Judgement recruits until they graduate as an official Judgement member.

"Normally, one would need to undergo 4 months of training and pass 13 tryouts before becoming an official Judgement member," said Aiho. "But there is a much shorter path if you're interested. All you need is to pass one test and you'll be an official Judgement member."

The test was to defeat the strongest Gemstone Sogiita Gunha. No one has ever passed the test for obvious reasons. Gunha was someone powerful enough to put up a fight against Suzushina Yuriko, the strongest esper in Academy City.

"This is a joke, right? Like that's something you say to discourage the idiots who wants to skip the absurdly long training," said Misaki.

Aiho pointed to a section in the pamphlet about discretionary admission. Individuals may directly become an official member of Judgement under special circumstances.

"So if I pass the test, can I join the investigation regarding Miss Kiyama's kidnapping case?" said Touma.

"Absolutely."

Seiri said he was lazy and irresponsible. She was only half right. He may be lazy for not wanting to go through 4 stupid months of Judgement training and tryouts, but he certainly wasn't an irresponsible person who doesn't keep his promise.

* * *

Sogiita Gunha was at the rooftop thinking about the space elevator Endymion that was replaced by a cluster of skyscrapers. Six months ago, he was right beside Endymion as he did his usual Judgement patrol duties when time froze around him. He could move about, but he couldn't change anything in his surroundings. Even a stray tissue paper on the pavement nearly tripped him over.

A woman in a purple cloak appeared from a misty portal. She was holding a glowing blue cube in one hand and a red amorphous blob on the other hand. Even as he fought Suzushina Yuriko, he never gave up believing in his guts because to be truly gutsy is to never give up. So what if that woman was the Grim Reaper? He will overcome Death itself with guts. Never give up even in the face of Death!

She asked him if he wanted to die and of course he answered no. Surprisingly, she nodded and then disappeared into the same misty portal she appeared from. That was odd, but okay. What happened next, however, was far from odd.

Time resumed and Endymion vanished. Standing in Endymion's place was a cluster of skyscrapers. Everyone was convinced that the skyscrapers were there the whole time. It was like he was now in another reality where Endymion was never built and Meigo Arisa never existed in the first place. Fortunately, he wasn't alone in thinking that. There were countless others on the Internet who remembers Meigo Arisa and Endymion. Did that mysterious woman in a purple cloak have anything to do with this? But why?

"You have a challenger," said Aiho.

Captain Yomikawa Aiho used to be his instructor in hostage negotiations classes. She had failed him ten times in a row and still counting. Why bother with negotiations anyway? All one simply needs is a healthy amount of guts to save the hostage. Speaking of guts, Kamijou Touma sure was a pretty gutsy guy to accept the challenge for direct admission to Judgement. Time to see what his guts are made of!

* * *

Touma was at a soccer field facing Sogiita Gunha, a boy dressed like a flamboyant superhero with a cape and a headband. Can he really beat Gunha? After all, he was someone who managed to put up a fight against Yuriko.

Touma smiled at a clearly worried Misaki seated in the front row. He did have the Reality Gem and Imagine Breaker at his disposal. Misaki has nothing to worry about. This wasn't exactly a one-sided fight favoring Gunha.

"Show me what your guts are made of," said Gunha with a wide grin.

Touma turned his right arm into a ghastly white shield. Equ:DarkMatter was the safer option until he understands Gunha's ability better.

"Ready when you are."

"Amazing Punch!"

Touma blocked the colorful fist hurled by Gunha with his shield. If he hadn't used all of the remaining Equ:DarkMatter infused in his right arm to reinforce his shield, it wouldn't have survived that blow. And to think this was only like 10% of Gunha's power.

"Super Amazing Giga Punch!"

The shield shattered into pieces and the impact slammed Touma to the ground. Without Equ:DarkMatter, his right arm reverted back to a charred mess but functional enough to punch someone with it.

Misaki was on the verge of tears. His charred right arm was a painful reminder to her that without Equ:DarkMatter he wouldn't even be able to walk properly. If he were to join Judgement, there might be a time where he would completely run out of Equ:DarkMatter. A cripple in a fight was not going to make it out alive even if said cripple had Imagine Breaker.

Gunha cracked his knuckles, "By the way, why do you want to join Judgement?"

"I made a promise to someone, that's all."

Touma doubted Gunha would remember a girl named Meigo Arisa with a dream to become a musician. Arisa gave up her dream for him, a boy whom she met for just two days, in exchange for the Soul Gem which granted him the ability to bring Misaki back to life. Before Arisa faded into nothingness, she made him promise to protect the dream of others on her behalf. And that was a promise he will fulfill no matter what. Joining Judgement was just a good way to fulfill that promise.

As for taking up that test to skip 4 stupid months of Judgement training and tryouts, it wasn't about him being lazy anymore. He needed to show Misaki that he'll be okay even if he had no Equ:DarkMatter.

"It takes guts to keep a promise to someone, but true guts is you choosing to join Judgement in this manner. Is that the best you got? I know there's still plenty of guts left in you," said Gunha.

Touma clenched his fists as dark red streaks appeared on his body. The power of the Reality Gem isn't only limited to manipulating Equ:DarkMatter.

"Who knows?"

Touma clashed against Gunha and traded blows at subsonic speed. Each blow shook the air and ripped holes in the ground beneath them. This was the best Touma could do. The Reality Gem was similar to a high skill ceiling, high reward weapon. He wasn't as skilled as the guy in his dreams that could casually turn someone into a pillar of salt with the Reality Gem. Heck, he barely understood the Reality Gem.

Gunha showed no signs of collapsing any time soon. In fact, Gunha seemed to be enjoying every moment of it.

A crushing pain began to slow Touma down. Damm it. No matter how much willpower he summoned to overcome that pain and keep moving at the same speed, it was as futile as trying to run on both legs with no legs. He had hit his physical limit and no amount of willpower was going to change that.

Touma ate a fist from Gunha and crashed facedown to the ground. He spat out soil as he got up unsteadily. That was embarrassing. Gunha remained unscratched while he was on the verge of collapsing any moment now. So much for showing Misaki he'll be okay without Equ:DarkMatter. Now there were big, fat tears falling from her eyes.

"Even if your attacks are lacking in guts, your heart is overflowing with guts! That's what matters the most. I think I can ask Judgement to shorten your training to 2 months judging from your performance," said Gunha.

While none of his attacks laid a single scratch on Gunha, he still had an ace up his sleeve.

Imagine Breaker.

"What are you talking about? This isn't over yet."

Misaki wiped her tears away, "Stop it! Do you intend on killing yourself just for a stupid chance to skip Judgement training?!"

This wasn't about skipping Judgement training anymore. It was about proving to Misaki that if he can defeat the strongest gemstone Sogiita Gunha, there was nothing Misaki had to worry about him working in Judgement.

Gunha grinned from ear to ear, "You, Kamijou Touma, are truly the most gutsy guy I've ever met."

"Ready when you are."

Gunha bolted towards him with a colorful aura, "Super Amazing Giga Punch!"

Touma grabbed Gunha's fist with his right hand and altered Gunha's forward momentum in such a way that let him knee Gunha in the abdomen before kicking him in the nuts. So long as his right hand was touching Gunha, Gunha was just as vulnerable as an ordinary person. Imagine Breaker was a power in his right hand that could also prevent an esper from using his or her ability as long as his right hand remained in contact with that esper.

He then clenched his left fist and hurled it across Gunha's face.

Touma let go of an unconscious Gunha, relieved that he won.

Misaki looked at him horrified while Aiho rushed out of the soccer field after making a phone call. Was there anything wrong with- oh. The grass below him were soaking wet with blood.

"Dirty guts for kicking my balls," said Gunha. "But guts nonetheless! By the way, I think you might need an ambulance for your right arm."

"No shit Sherlock," said Touma.

The skin extending from his shoulder was the only thing preventing his right arm from falling off completely. It seems that Imagine Breaker can only negate Gunha's power and not the momentum generated by Gunha's power.

Touma patted a sobbing Misaki on her head, "Relax, we're in Academy City. I'll be okay in no time."

"Miss Yomikawa will be arriving with the ambulance soon," said Misaki.

He may have 'defeated' Gunha, but Misaki wasn't smiling. In the end, he proved nothing to Misaki. He was just not at a level where Misaki could pat him on the back and cheer him on as he walks into a chaotic battlefield to end a war.

* * *

**Review replies:  
**

**To Guest: **

1: The Marvel elements are just a storytelling tool. I really don't think it would make people forget which side of a story they're reading? It's not like Thor or the Hulk will appear in this story. No way man. This isn't a Marvel crossover story.

2: Turning into a dragon? Touma can be whatever he wants with the Reality Gem.

**To Vergilmercer2: **

No harem, sorry.

**Author's Note:**

Yes, Touma joins Judgement and gets his training shortened like in most other fics, but in this fic Touma fights Gunha for that to happen. To be honest, there's a reason why Touma doesn't join Judgement in canon. He's... actually not as selfless as you think he is. LN readers should have a better understanding why this is the case.

By the way, if you're wondering, the woman in a purple cloak can be considered to be a Level 6. If you read Re:Pray, you might also know her as the personification of Soul but I think it's easier to think of her as a Level 6 esper with the ability to manipulate souls. Like all espers, she only has one powerful ability so she's holding tools (Space Gem - blue cube, Reality Gem - red blob) that will help her do things she normally can't do.

Hope you liked the chapter and if you have any comments you may leave them in the box below.


	3. Welcome To Judgement (1)

**Author's Note: **

Re:Pray was a heavy and niche story that may not be everyone's liking, so I've made this story a technical sequel of Re:Pray instead because I don't want people to feel like they must read Re:Pray to get into this story. What do I mean by technical sequel then? It means that this story is a standalone story, but to those who read Re:Pray, it will certainly be a different experience reading this story compared to those who never read Re:Pray. I've done some edits on the previous two chapters but if you've already read Re:Pray, you don't really have to read those edited chapters.

**To Guest:**

1: Death may be here, but not Thanos. Like I said, this isn't a Marvel crossover. However, I admit that the summary might have gave you the impression that MCU Thanos might appear in this story. To be honest, Touma does share similar traits with MCU Thanos. Like Touma, MCU Thanos does what he thinks is right (wiping half of all life) and no one can convince him otherwise, the difference is that Touma is labelled as righteous while Thanos is labelled as the Mad Titan.

Also, from the To Aru wiki, Motoharu describes Touma as someone who will carry that mistake all on his own, along with his own. Even so, he works to correct his mistakes in order to bring a smile to everyone's face at the end of the road, no matter the cost to himself. In MCU Thanos's case, his mistake was not being able to save his planet from extinction. And he works to correct his mistake by collecting all six Infinity Stones to 'bring a smile to everyone's face at the end of the road' (watch the sun rise on a grateful universe) by wiping half of all life in the Universe, no matter what the cost.

3: To put it simply, the gems are too powerful to be destroyed by Imagine Breaker. But I'll list down the details of how Imagine Breaker interacts with each of the gem in this story at least if you're interested.

Power Gem: Touma can easily pick up the Power Gem like an ordinary gemstone with his right hand because of Imagine Breaker. Also, the gem is rendered unusable while Touma is touching it with his right hand. Any purple energy blast from the opponent using the Power Gem can be negated by the Imagine Breaker similar to Dragon's Breath which is to say that the Power Gem can easily output an amount of power that surpasses the Imagine Breaker's negation speed.

Space Gem: Is rendered unusable while Touma is touching it with his right hand. There is a very, very, very small window of opportunity to negate for example, a barrier or a teleportation portal created by an opponent using the Space Gem before it is no longer considered as a supernatural phenomenon. Yes, it's similar to the Curtana Original's Dimensional Severing Spell and notice how that spell is closely related to the concept of Space.

Reality Gem: Due to its nature, it is still usable even while Touma is touching it with his right hand because there are flaws in the Imagine Breaker which the Reality Gem can exploit to prevent the Imagine Breaker from rendering it unusable. Rest are actually kind of spolierish so I'm going to leave it like that for now.

Soul Gem: Is immune to the Imagine Breaker because Imagine Breaker has no effects on souls.

Time Gem: Is rendered unusable while Touma is touching it with his right hand. Also, the Time Stone cannot reverse time in an area where Touma is at.

Mind Gem: Is rendered unusable while Touma is touching it with his right hand. Imagine Breaker prevents the Mind Stone from reading or controlling Touma's mind. Other people who are affected by the Mind Gem only needs to be touched by Touma's right hand to turn back to normal.

By the way, not all the Gems will appear in this story, so what I've written above is just something fun to know about, but not relevant to the story... for now.

* * *

Touma placed his charred right arm into a machine. All he had to do was let the machine inject his arm with Equ:DarkMatter and the Reality Gem will do the rest in restoring his right arm back to normal. The Reality Gem isn't actually a gem despite its name. It was a red sludge thingy within his right hand that was invisible most of the time.

The frog-faced doctor who is known to everyone as Dr Gekota even though his real name is Heaven Canceller sighed before activating the machine, "I'm starting to think that it's really just you making lousy decisions rather your rotten luck as you claim."

"I won't deny that. But it's also true that I have rotten luck."

Having rotten luck was like an invisible disability. They can't see how his rotten luck affects his life in subtle ways. For example, he had never once experienced what it's like for the traffic light to turn green right when he arrives at a pedestrian crossing. Turning red however happens far more frequently than he liked. Still, it was much better than in the past where he would curse random people with rotten luck just by touching them.

Touma clenched his teeth in pain as needles plunged into his right arm, but that wasn't the worst part. The restoration process was far more excruciating as the Reality Gem ripped apart every damaged cell within his right arm and replaced it with Equ:DarkMatter. This time, it was so excruciating that he felt his consciousness slipping into a vision.

Touma saw an unkempt girl with messy blonde hair and blue eyes. Alyssa Birdway. How did he know that girl's name? He may have vaguely heard about this name from a dream he had before, but she definitely never appeared in his dreams before.

Everyone shunned Alyssa Birdway. She was a plague no one could get rid of. Touma was once shunned by everyone like Alyssa, but he had parents and lived in modern day Japan unlike Alyssa who was alone and stuck in medieval England. Alyssa was deemed as a heretic for possessing a power that could negate even the miracle of God in her right hand. Yet no one could successfully execute her. She just wouldn't die no matter how much those hateful scumbags tried. Even so, Alyssa chose to treat everyone with kindness.

Perhaps this was why he fell in love with Misaki. Misaki had been through far worse than Alyssa and yet Misaki refused to let that bring her down. Misaki was mentally strong, just like Alyssa. They even have the same hair color but that was probably just a coincidence. There are many people in the world with blonde hair.

Alyssa looked in his direction, like she knew he was there. That's impossible. He didn't even have like an arm to scratch his hair and a hair to be scratched. He should be invisible to everyone.

Alyssa flashed a friendly grin, "Oh hello there, Mr Knight-In-Training. How may I help you?"

Oh. This was a memory of him talking to Alyssa, not a vision.

* * *

Touma transformed his right hand back and forth between a ghastly white blade and shield a couple of times. Ever since he had Equ:DarkMatter injected into his right arm and leg, those odd memories were starting to become as vivid as a movie scene. Apparently, Dark Matter could be used to obtain information from past events, which might be the reason behind his odd, vivid memories according to Dr Gekota.

Dr Gekota ticked off a checklist, "Try not to get yourself hospitalized again, alright?"

The surgery to fully attach Touma's right arm back to his body after the fight with Gunha was a simple surgery that took about an hour, but Touma had to stay one night in the hospital for further observation.

"Trust me, doc. I definitely don't have a masochistic fetish of being hospitalized every other day."

A lightbulb seemed to have went off in Dr Gekota's head.

"That's it. What you need is psychotherapy for your fetish. I could refer you to-"

"What?! My rotten luck would surely sink my reputation even further than the Mariana Trench if I go for this psychotherapy. And besides I don't have a fetish in the first place!"

"Let's aim for a week where you don't get yourself hospitalized, shall we?"

Now that he has officially joined Judgement, there was no way he would survive a week without being hospitalized. A day would be a more reasonable aim… which was honestly a rather sad situation to be in. Rotten luck.

"By the way, you happen to know anyone named Alyssa Birdway?"

Dr Gekota raised a curious eyebrow, "That's a name I haven't heard in ages. Is she the girl from your memories?"

While Dr Gekota never met Alyssa Birdway in person, most of his medical knowledge originated from Alyssa. Alyssa Birdway was a healer so skilled that people branded her as a heretic for distorting God's rules. Since people would rather die than be healed by a heretic like her, Alyssa spread her medical knowledge anonymously across the world hoping that the knowledge would heal those people she couldn't save. In the end, only the knowledge remained and the name Alyssa Birdway was eventually forgotten by history.

If Alyssa Birdway was a real person who existed, then what was he to her? All he could tell was that they were probably friends in a past life.

* * *

Judgment Branch 177 was a five storey building located in District 7. Touma climbed the stairs to Level 2, where the main office was at. From now on, he would be working in Branch 177 as an official Judgement member. Misaki must be pretty mad at him for going all out against Gunha if she left a message saying she was busy and couldn't accompany him for the whole day. Yup, he should definitely get a tub of strawberry ice cream to appease her.

Touma entered the office to see the bespectacled Judgement girl Shiage made fun of. Seated beside the Judgement girl was Kongou Mitsuko. Mitsuko was convinced it was him who made fun of that Judgement girl when it was actually Shiage. God damn it.

His right hand accidentally knocked into a carton of milk as he waved hello and the milk spilled all over a stack of paperwork. Oh shit. What a terrible first impression.

Touma smiled sheepishly, "Hey, I'm Kamijou Touma, the new guy assigned to this branch."

The bespectacled Judgement girl directed him to a row of chairs near the entrance. She was not at all pleased with the accident.

"Sir, if you're here to make a report, please wait a moment over there."

"I'm not here to make a report. I'm here to report for work. Look, I even have this Judgement armband to prove it."

The bespectacled Judgement girl smiled, "I see. You're must be here to return a missing Judgement armband. Thank you so much."

"I really am Kamijou Touma! The guy who became an official Judgement member by defeating Sogiita Gunha. Ring a bell? I'm sure the Central Judgement Committee must have emailed my profile to your branch."

Mitsuko snapped her fan shut and laughed obnoxiously, "The guy who paid a ton of money to skip the four months of Judgement training, you mean? I can't believe you're using such a ridiculous claim of defeating the strongest Gemstone as an excuse."

If this wasn't a civilised society with laws set in place, he would have punched Mitsuko in the face. She had no idea how far he went just to barely eke out a small victory over Gunha. He even upset Misaki to the point where Misaki used the same excuse of being busy to not visit him in the hospital after that fight.

The bespectacled Judgement girl showed him a redacted profile of the new guy named Kamijou Touma who was assigned to this branch.

"The Committee must have mixed my picture up with another guy. I swear I'm the real Kamijou Touma."

"That happened to me once as well actually," said the bespectacled Judgement girl. "I'm sorry, but you look nothing like a guy who could defeat Sogiita Gunha."

"You shouldn't judge a book by its cover."

"I believe you're Kamijou Touma. I just don't believe you defeated Sogiita Gunha. I hate people like you who buys their way to the top instead of putting in the work," said Mitsuko.

"But I-"

Mitsuko raised her fan against him, "Enough. I, Kongou Mitsuko challenge you to a duel. If you're indeed the guy who defeated Sogiita Gunha, prove it."

He really had nothing to prove to Mitsuko, but he needed a way to prove that he was indeed the real deal.

"What's your esper level by the way?" said Touma.

Mitsuko flashed a smug smile, "Unfortunately for you, I'm a Level 3. Surely a Level 3 like me shouldn't be a problem for you if you are as powerful as you claim to be."

"Give me a second."

He should at least ask permission to engage in a duel against Mitsuko from Misaki first.

Misaki replied back to his text almost immediately.

_No problem! Have fun and don't go too overboard!（⌒▽⌒）_

She probably knew that a Level 3 wouldn't pose any danger to him, so that's why she allowed him to fight Mitsuko so readily.

"Alright, I accept your challenge," said Touma.

* * *

The battlefield of choice was a grassy field near a river. The bespectacled Judgement girl was Konori Mii and she will be the judge for this duel.

Mii sighed, "Miss Kongou, please go easy on him will you? I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"I'm not going to go easy on a fraud. He deserves to be hospitalized for a couple of days at least," said Mitsuko.

The mere thought of being hospitalized sent chills down Touma's spine. Dr Gekota would surely think of him as a masochistic pervert if he ended up being hospitalized again just hours after being released from the hospital! At this rate, his reputation is going to sink as tragically as the Titanic.

"Fraud is a very serious accusation. If I were you, I wouldn't accuse anyone of fraud without proof," said Touma.

"Your stupid looking face is enough proof," said Mitsuko.

Yet another idiot who judges a book by its cover. But was he really that unattractive to the point where no one would believe him if he said he actually has a girlfriend?!

"You leave me with no choice then."

Dark red streaks appeared on Touma's body and he bolted towards Mitsuko. Before Mitsuko could blink, Touma grabbed Mitsuko by the collar as he rested the flat side of his ghastly white blade on Mitsuko's cheek.

Mitsuko staring at him wide-eyed with shock was enough of an answer for him. He morphed his blade back to his right hand and flicked Mitsuko's wide forehead.

"Do you believe me now?" said Touma.

Mitsuko nodded before she fell on the grass trembling. Maybe he went kind of overboard but at least he managed to convince Mitsuko and Mii that he was indeed someone who could defeat Gunha even he doesn't look like it.

"But you're a Level 0…" said Mii who was just as shocked as Mitsuko.

"Only because I don't have an esper ability. It doesn't mean that I can't use a weapon to augment myself."

The 'weapon' in question was the Reality Gem, a singularity forged from the remnants of a fundamental aspect of the Universe by extraordinarily powerful beings known as Personifications. His battle with Gunha taught him how he could use the Reality Gem to temporarily boost his movement speed… at a cost it seems.

Touma clenched his teeth in pain. The human body was not meant to move at speeds more than a hundred kilometers per hour. When he heard a distant roaring of an ambulance siren, his heart sank. That's it. Dr Gekota was surely now convinced that he was indeed a masochistic pervert.

The one who called the ambulance was Misaki. She let out a disappointed sigh.

"Dr Gekota was right. It's you making lousy decisions, not your rotten luck," said Misaki.

* * *

Touma awoke to a familiar ceiling in a hospital room. He had been hospitalized so many times that this room was reserved for him. When he increased his movement speed with the Reality Gem while fighting against Gunha, nothing happened. Now all of a sudden his body couldn't handle the increased movement speed for less than a second? Was his rotten luck so hellbent on hospitalizing him in less than a day just so Dr Gekota would surely think of him as a masochistic pervert?!

Misaki was seated by his bed while holding his right hand, "I think it would be great if you stop relying on Equ:DarkMatter. You still have Imagine Breaker, right?"

That's right, he still has Imagine Breaker. So why did he always go for Equ:DarkMatter as his first option? It was like the Reality Gem had been... subtly influencing him to use it as much as possible under the pretense that it was far superior than the Imagine Breaker. If the Reality Gem was truly superior than the Imagine Breaker, there was no need for the Reality Gem to play games.

So what exactly was the Imagine Breaker then? All he knew was that the Imagine Breaker was a power within his right hand that could negate any supernatural phenomenon. Who knows, the Imagine Breaker might just be another singularity forged by the Personifications. Or artifact as Misaki would say.

Touma ruffled Misaki's hair with a smile, "I guess you're right."

Misaki smiled back sweetly, "You will sleep in the bathtub as punishment for touching my hair without my permission again."

This was a bad habit he's been trying to kick, but sometimes he gets carried away and ends up touching her hair again.

"How about I buy you two tubs of strawberry ice cream instead?"

"Three tubs."

"Working hard on that D cup upgrade I see."

"You will sleep naked in the bathtub filled with ice-cold water! And I will forgo my sleep just to make sure you don't sneak away or anything!"

Maybe Dr Gekota was right. Sometimes, it was really just him making lousy decisions instead of him being unlucky. But the look on Misaki's face was totally worth it and besides, it was for her own good that she cut down on her sugar intake.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Hope you enjoyed this short chapter and if you have any comments, you may leave them in the box below.


End file.
